The COVID-19 pandemic and perceived risks of immigrants in the United States
International Journal of Bank Marketing
ISSN: 0265-2323
Article publication date: 6 April 2023
Issue publication date: 20 June 2023
Abstract
Purpose
The COVID-19 pandemic has caused hundreds of thousands of people to suffer severe illness or die and has had severe effects on individuals’ financial well-being as well. Unfortunately, it is very likely that the pandemic has had a disproportionate effect, particularly on vulnerable and underserved groups, including immigrants in the USA. This study aims to examine the association between perceived health risk and perceived financial risk attributable to COVID-19, and focuses on their heterogeneous effects depending upon immigrant status.
Design/methodology/approach
The study used the Understanding America Study (UAS) COVID-19 National Survey data collected from April 2020 to July 2021. Sets of ordinary least squares (OLS) regression and fixed effects regression analyses were conducted on the perceived risk COVID-19 poses on households’ finances. The main focal variables of interest were immigrant status and perceived risk of COVID-19 infection and death.
Findings
The results showed that the correlation between health risk and perceived financial risk was much higher among first- and second-generation immigrants. Surprisingly, various types of government aid did not have a consistent and significant effect on the recipients’ perception of the risk that COVID-19 poses to their household finances.
Originality/value
This study is one of the few attempts to empirically examine the association between perceived health risk and financial risk during the COVID-19 pandemic by focusing on the heterogeneity by immigrant status. The authors used an appropriate methodology that considered the panel structure of the UAS COVID-19 National Survey’s data. The study provides important implications for researchers and policymakers related to immigrants’ financial well-being.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
The project described in this paper relies on data from survey(s) administered by the Understanding America Study, which is maintained by the Center for Economic and Social Research (CESR) at the University of Southern California. The content of this paper is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of USC or UAS. The collection of the UAS COVID-19 tracking data is supported in part by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and by grant U01AG054580 from the National Institute on Aging, and many others.
Citation
Lee, S.T. and Kim, K.T. (2023), "The COVID-19 pandemic and perceived risks of immigrants in the United States", International Journal of Bank Marketing, Vol. 41 No. 5, pp. 1136-1153. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJBM-07-2022-0320
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2023, Emerald Publishing Limited